Collapsible container

ABSTRACT

A collapsible container having high stacking strength and having means on the ends thereof cooperating with means on the sides, top and bottom to maintain the container in an operative condition without the use of fasteners.

United States Patent Blanchard 1451 Oct. 24, 1972 [54] COLLAPSIBLE CONTAINER [72] Inventor: Russell T. Blanchard, PO. Box 176,

EngeIhard, NC. 27824 [22] Filed: June 4, 1970 [21] Appl. No: 43,479

521 u.s.c|....; ..217/l2,217/65 511 lnt.Cl. ..B65d9/12 58 Field of Search ..217/12, 55, 4, 69; 220/4 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,547,672 4/1951 Spanjer ..217/12 2,014,543 9/1935 Whiton ..'217/12 2,388,297 11/1945 Slaughter ..217/65' 1,507,042 9/1924 Binkley, "217/12 2,549,013 4/1951 Robles et al. "220/4 R FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 735,431 8/1955 Great Britain.....; ..217/12 930,375 7/1955 Germany ..217/12 Primary Examiner-Raphael H. Schwartz Attorney-Smith, Michael, Bradford and Gardiner 57 ABSTRACT A collapsible container having high stacking strength and having means on the ends thereof cooperating with means on the sides, top and bottom to maintain the container in an operative condition without the use of fasteners.

4 Claims, 10 Drawing Figures PATENTED 24 I972 3. 700. l 34 sum 1 or 2 INVENTOR.

Russell 7: Blanchard A TO RNEYS This invention relates to collapsible containers.

There is a great need for containers which may be used for shipping perishable goods. Such containers must be sturdy to withstand great loads when they are stacked one on top of another.

Preferably, the containers are formed of materials which inherently are not heavy in weight.

Because of the present problem of pollution due to the disposal of waste, it is most desireable that shipping containers can be reused many times thereby reducing the overall amount of waste which is created by disposal of single-use containers.

In many instances, particularly when shipping fresh fish or sea food, the containers must be sterilized before they can be reused.

There are many containers available today which can It is therefore, an object of this invention to provide a container which may be used many times before being discarded.

It is another object of this invention to provide a collapsible container which is readily and easily assembled and disassembled, simplifying its return for reuse.

It is another object of this invention to provide a collapsible container which has a high stacking strength and which is economical to manufacture.

These and other objects of the invention will become more readily apparent from the following description and'drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the container partially disassembled;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the assembled container;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the connecting elements of the end of the container;

FIG. 4 is a plurality of detailed views of the connecting elements;

FIG. 5 is a partial sectional view taken on line 55 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a partial sectional view taken on line 6-6 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a modification of the container;

FIG. 8 is a partial view of the connecting means of the modified container of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a partial sectional view of a modified con necting means for the container of FIG. 1; and,

.FIG. 10 is a partial sectional view of a further modified connecting means for the container of FIG. 1.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, the container 10 comprises end panels 12 and 14, side walls 16 and 18, a top 20 and a bottom 22.

Each end panel is constructed identically so it will suffice to describe only one. The end panel 12 includes means for releasably engaging means on the side walls, top, and bottom of the container.

The means for engaging the side walls 16 and 18 comprise elongated members 26 and 28 having a J- shaped cross-section as best illustrated in FIG. 4. The

long leg 30 of the member 26 is secured to the panel 12 in a conventional manner. The member 26 may be formed of most any rigid material; however, materialswhich may be extruded such as metal or plastic are preferred. The cost of manufacturing the members by extruding would be much less than machining the members from metal or wood.

The short leg 32 of the member 26 extends beyond the edge of the panel 12 and toward the exterior surface of the panel 12. The other side wall engaging member 28 is secured to the panel 12 by its long leg 34. The short leg 36 of the member 28 extends from the panel 12 in the same manner as leg 32. In this manner, the channels formed by the legs of the members 26 and 28 open toward the exterior surface of the panel 12.

Adjacent the top of the panel 12 is a member 38, L- shaped in cross-section, having one leg 40 secured to the interior surface of the panel 12. The other leg 42 extends from the panel 12 substantially perpendicufurther member 43, also L-shaped in cross-section, is

provided with one leg 44 secured to the interior surface of the panel 12 and the other leg 45 extending perpendicularly therefrom.

The end panel 14 is provided with identical connecting members designated by the prime of corresponding numbers.

The side wall 16 is provided at each end thereof with hook portions 46 and 46. The hook portions 46 and 46 may be an integral part of the side wall 16, as illustrated, or may be a separate element formed of different material than the side wall 16 and secured thereto.

The side wall 18 is also provided with hook portions 48 and 48.

The container may be easily assembled. The side walls 16 and 18 are placed in an upright position with the end panels 12 and 14 extending laterally therebetween and positioned inwardly from the ends of the side walls. The end panels 12 and 14 are then moved toward the ends of the side walls 16 and 18 thereby moving the members 26, 26' and 28, 28 into engagement with the hook portions 46, 46 and 48, 48 as best illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 6.

In order to maintain the side walls and end panels in erect position it is necessary only to slide the bottom 22 into place. It will now be apparent that the container will remain erect without additional fasteners. After the container is loaded the top is slid into position and the container is ready for shipment.

The top 20 and the bottom 22 have cut out portions 47, 47' and 49, 49' respectively, so that when in assembled position the exterior of the container will be smooth.

If desired ties may be used to secure the top 20 in place.

When the canton is to be disassembled, it is necessary only to slide the top 20 and bottom 22 out, as shown in FIG. 1, and the side walls 16 and 18 and end panels 12 and 14 will fall free. In its collapsed condition each element may be thoroughly cleaned and sterilized if desired. There are no corners to collect dirt and debris.

The container may thus be easily and quickly assembled and disassembled. It may be thoroughly cleaned, thus enabling it to be reused many times.

Additionally, because of its unique construction the loads due to stacking and handling are localized at the ends thereby relieving the stress on the top and side walls.

In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 7, the side walls are comprised of a plurality of slats 50, 52, 54, and 56. The connecting means of this embodiment are the same as that of the container described above with the addition of detents 58 in the'elongated members. 26 and 28 and ribs 60 on the inside wall of the hook portions 46 and 48 of each slat. In this manner the slats are maintained in spaced relation by the ribs 60 slidably engaged in detents 58.

This type of container is well suited for produce where some air circulation is desired.

A still further modification of the invention is the shape of the connecting members as illustrated in FIGS. 9 and 10. In this modification, each connecting member comprises a solid bar 61 with a groove 62 extending the length'thereof to receive a tongue 64 on the corresponding wall member. The bars 61 are secured to each. end panel 12 and 14 with the grooved surfaces facing the corresponding wall member. In this embodiment, the container is erected by supporting'the end panels 12 and 14 in an upright position and sliding each wall member into place.

This construction is similar to prior art containers; however, differs particularly in its strength. The tongue and groove connection is formed substantially along the center line of the bars 61 thus providing flat load bearing surfaces 66 and 68 to increase the strength of the container.

said end panels being provided with a channel extending along each side thereof, said channels being open toward the exterior surface of said end panel and being closed at both ends, each of said end panels being further provided with a channel extending adjacent the top thereof and a channel extending adjacent the bottom thereof, the channels along the top and bottom of the end panels opening toward the interior surface of said end panels, means at the ends of said side walls to engage said exteriorly-opening channels on the end panels when said end panels are moved toward the ends of said side walls while maintaining said end panels substantially perpendicular to said side walls and said interiorly-opening channels on said end panels adapted to slidably receive said top and said bottom whereby said top and bottom bias said end panels outwardly to maintain the sidewalls in locking engagement with said end panels.

2. A collapsible container set forth in claim 1 wherein said side walls comprise a plurality of slats.

3. Acollapsible container as set forth in claim 2 wherein said exteriorly-opening channels include detents and the hook portions of each slat are provided with ribs to cooperate with said detents for holding said slats in spaced relation along said channel members.

4. A collapsible container as set forth in claim 1 wherein the means at ends of said side walls comprise hook portions. 

1. A collapsible container comprising a pair of end panels, a pair of side walls, a top and a bottom, each of said end panels being provided with a channel extending along each side thereof, said channels being open toward the exterior surface of said end panel and being closed at both ends, each of said end panels being further provided with a channel extending adjacent the top thereof and a channel extending adjacent the bottom thereof, the channels along the top and bottom of the end panels opening toward the interior surface of said end panels, means at the ends of said side walls to engage said exteriorly-opening channels on the end panels when said end panels are moved toward the ends of said side walls while maintaining said end panels substantially perpendicular to said side walls and said interiorly-opening channels on said end panels adapted to slidably receive said top and said bottom whereby said top and bottom bias said end panels outwardly to maintain the sidewalls in locking engagement with said end panels.
 2. A collapsible container set forth in claim 1 wherein said side walls comprise a plurality of slats.
 3. A collapsible container as set forth in claim 2 wherein said exteriorly-opening channels include detents and the hook portions of each slat are provided with ribs to cooperate with said detents for holding said slats in spaced relation along said channel members.
 4. A collapsible container as set forth in claim 1 wherein the means at ends of said side walls comprise hook portions. 